Water-wheel



(No ModeL) v F. W. WOOD.

WAT-BB. WHEEL. No. 440,085. A Patented Nov. 4, 1890.

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UNiTED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

FKANK. W. \VOOD, OF BALDWIN, MAINE.

WATER-WHEEL.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 440,085, dated November4, 1890. Application filed January 11, 1888. Serial No. 260,463. (Nomodel.)

To all whom, it may concern:

Be it known that I, FRANK. \V. WVOOD, a citizen of the United States,residing at Baldwin, in the county of Cumberland and State of Maine,have in vented certain new and useful Improvements in Tater-Wheels, ofwhich the following is a specification.

My invention is a turbine wheel, in which part of the guides or bladesagainst which the water impinges in passing through the wheel are maderigid and partpivoted or movable, the movable blades orguides beingautomatically adjusted according to the resistance of the wheel due tothe amount of work which it is performing.

In the accompanying drawings, which illustrate my invention; Figure 1represents a plan view of the invention. Fig. 2 shows a side elevationwith the guides raised. a section on line w 00 of Fig. 1.

In the drawings I have represented the wheel as made with four fixed andfour movable guides or blades, but this number is arbitrary and may bevaried at pleasure within reasonable limits. The hub a is connected tothe rim 1) by means of fixed blades 0, which are inclined from top tobottom, substantially as shown. The lateral walls of the blades areformed in the inside by the hub, which, with the number of blades shown,is rectangular. On the other or outside the Wall of the blade is formedin part by the inner face of the rim and in part by an upturned flangeof the blades, as shown at d, this flange joining the rim. The upperedges of the fixed blades are substantially in radial linesand arepreferably beveled or thinned down to an edge. The spaces between thesefour fixed blades without any further device would form awheel withblades for the downward passage of the water on the general principle ofconstruction and with the same general effect as in water-Wheelsheretofore known. The spaces, however, between the blades are longer.Each of these is a sector of a circle struck from the center of thewheel, with the inner angle removed on a line at right angles to theradius which passes through the center of the blade, and in the centerof the curved face,

Fig. 3 shows" directly opposite each other, are the trunnions e e, onwhich the movable blades turn. The parts are fitted as shown, so thatwhen the movable blades lie flat or in a closed position, they form aplain closed upper surface of the wheel, which will receive the weightof the water without effect.

The movable blades are connected to a sleeve F by means of rods g, whichare pivoted at their lower ends to the ears h on the movable blades, theupper ends being pivoted to the sleeve. The sleeve has a circumferentialgroove Z, by means of which it may be raised. \Vhen the movable bladesare closed, they will not be opened by the pressure of the water, asthat operates equally on both sides of the pivots, and there is besidesthe weight of the collar and rods all on one side; but by slightlyraising the collar the upper ends of the blades are raised and the upperentrance of the water-passages opened. It the wheel is running light,with but little resistance, the wheel runs with the water and the bladesremain only slightly raised. If, however, the resistance or work of thewheel be increased, the force of the water will raise the movable bladesuntil they are in equilibrium, and then the passages are opened to theirgreatest dimensions.

I have described the wheel as located in a horizontal position, but thisposition is not essential to its 'action. The wheel is to be mounted inbearings, as such wheels usually are, and the shaft is adapted to beconnected in any well-known way with the machinery which it is to turn.The sleeve is splined on its shaft, so as to turn therewith, to havefree vertical movement, and it may have any suitable connection wherebyit may be raised to start the wheel.

I claim as my invention- 1. A water-wheel consisting of a hub and rimand fixed blades located between the hub and rim, in combination withpivoted blades located in the space in the fixed blades adapted to closethe passages between the fixed blades and provided with means forturning the movable blades and opening the passages for the water, allsubstantially as described.

2. A Water-Wheel consisting of a hub and rim and fixed blades locatedbetween the hub and rim, in combination with pivoted blades oted rodsconnecting the movable blades to the sleeve, all substantially asdescribed.

located in the space in the fixed blades FRANK. W. WOOD. 5 adapted toclose the passages between the Witnesses:

fixed blades and provided with a sleeve splined LELAND S. RICHARDSON,

upon the shaft of the water-Wheel, and piv- CHARLES F. SAWYER.

